Sunland Breeders

P.O. box 6501

Burbank, CA 91510
(213)500-6621
Argentine Black and White Tegu
Tupinambis Merianae
The first thing you should know about your new family member is that the Argentine B&W
Tegus grow fairly large, some males can even reach 5 ft. total. They are extremely intelligent
little reptiles, and they love food! If you work with your Tegu, he will be the best pet you could
ask for, but if you dont handle him enough and just toss food at him, he will become food
aggressive, and overall pretty wild.
Housing:
For a hatchling, about 3-7 in body, a 20 gallon, well ventilated tank is fine, although I would shy
away from glass tanks seeing as its hard to keep the temperatures perfect for your animal.
Most substrates that retain humidity work, e.g. Coco Husk Coarse Chips, Pure Cypress Mulch,
not a blend, Orchid Bark, Aspen Shavings, Eucalyptus Mulch, or a commercial bedding such as
Repti-Bark. Make sure that with whatever you get, you keep an eye out for their eyes and makes
sure no bark/mulch is trapped in there. A water dish that your Tegu can climb out of, submerge
his body in, and relax without having to swim, is perfect. He will need fresh (chlorine free) water
every morning. One Tegu only needs one hide; if you have more than one, you need more than
one hide. Once your Tegu reaches yearling status, the only thing that changes is the dimensions
of your cage, they need more space. Your yearling can be placed in a 6x 3 wide cage, and this
would suffice for the rest of their life. Optimally, though, adults do best in 8 ft. long by 3 ft. deep
cages. I would suggest also adding in a thermometer so you can keep track of the temperature
in the tank.
Temperatures:
Daytime: 95-100F (hot side) and 75-85F (cool side)
Nighttime: Dont let your baby drop below 75 at night, because babies are small and delicate,
and they have a higher survival rate if you dont drop their temperature.
UVB:
Tegus do need UVB supplements if they are not getting natural, unfiltered, sunlight. Some
options are using UVB bulbs, either Repti-sun 10.0, or Power-suns 100 watts. There is also Repti
Calcium with D3 powder. (I personally cook a bit of the calcium powder into scrambled eggs)
Humidity:
Tegus need high humidity. Here in California, we have a hard time keeping our adults with
perfect sheds. Tegus need to be soaked twice a week in warm water, nothing deep that they
need to swim in. Also, a spot of the cage should be misted every other day.
Food:
Personally, I feed my Tegus outside of the enclosure as hatchlings to yearlings. But Tegus are
smart, and with enough interaction, they are smart enough to realize that fingers dont mean
food. Its really personal preference. If you feel safer feeding your Tegu outside his enclosure, go
for it. Hatchlings will eat something small every day (small, small) pinkies (twice a week max),
super worms dusted in calcium powder, scrambled eggs or boiled eggs (why risk your tegu
getting something from raw egg when hes not in the wild where it would be his only option)
and a variety of fruit (e.g. blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, banana, grapes) and fresh fish
like cod or salmon. Yearlings should eat every other day, its mainly the same diet, you would
just be bumping them up to fuzzy mice, or hoppers if they grow fast. You should give their
stomachs a break after the mice and wait about two days before giving them something. Full
grown adults, completely same diet, should be fed every two to three days. Also, your tegu
should never get large/jumbo adult rats, it is too hard for them to get it down and its just too
much work. Small and Medium rats are good enough. Most people do a 75% meat and 25%
fruit/veggie diet for their Tegus. I personally keep it 50/50, for the hatchlings, protein one day,
fruit the next.
NOTE: Large Tegus will accept all sorts of foods, mostly what you eat. Obesity is also important
in this species, so do not overfeed nor offer food that you know would not be good for you.